Rise of the Phoenix - Apocalypse Rebirth

Chapter 51 - November 3031 [Beginning of Part 2]

November, 3031 - Country C

The Deep Freeze swept through the world on the 13th with a vengeance. Country C's previous day's temperature of 5 degrees F plummeted to -35 degrees F on the exact time that the prophet account predicted. Water pipes bursted all over due to the water expanding into ice, the wires and plastics suddenly became brittle and broke inside the walls and grounds. Without proper insulation built in against the extreme cold during construction, buildings and houses all lost their power and water.

It got too cold too quickly for people to acclimate. For those who were caught unaware, they went to sleep and never woke up. 2% of the world population died on the 13th.

Everyone locked their house down and remained inside. Those that took note of their government's emergency announcement bought plenty of CFP so starving to death wasn't going to be an issue.

The issue was freezing to death.

City P - Kal Zhang

Long and elegant fingers with strong knuckles stroked the guitar strings emitting lonesome acoustic sounds through the cold morning. Puffs of white air drifted away from the man sitting in front of the window. The air inside the cabin was still freezing cold even though the fireplace was blazing next to him.

His fingers moved languidly while plucking the strings to a song only he knew. It was low and gentle, sweet in it's simple rhythm and melody. One can hear the yearning of the musician playing the song, and the passion as the song reaches a crescendo then lingers for some time before the quiet and soft piece ends.

The stillness of the morning settled into the space, as if the sounds of music never happened.

The man gently placed the guitar back in its case, the stones on his left ring finger glinting and reflecting from the fireplace's light, gold and white.

The man sat back on the couch and tugged the thermal blanket up to cover his wide shoulders before his fingers absentmindedly started playing with the ring. It seems to be a habitual movement the man makes whenever he is deep in thought.

Or when thinking of someone.

Kal can feel the cold but wasn't as affected by it like he had expected to be.

The family cabin is high up in the mountains and dug deep into the earth. The temperature remained constant throughout the year thus was perfect for hot summer getaways and storing wine. At least that's what Kal's ancestors thought over a century ago. They bought the whole mountain and the valley below to build a winery and the cave was to store wine.

Inside the mountain the temperature stays a constant 60 degrees F which was why Kal decided to relocate the whole family to this location. The cabin is actually 2 stories above ground but has 2 basement levels. The staff and their families were situated in the basement 1 level but the rest of the Zhang family reside on level 2.

Around 240 people are living inside the mountain. Only Kal and his bodyguards live above ground.

Kal then brought up the holopad and looked through the data. It was one of a few projects his company is working on. Or was working on before the Deep Freeze. The data shows some abnormal results that some of his scientists have recorded.

Kal read the information meticulously while rubbing the ring when his eyes brightened in sudden revelation.

Kal: What if the conditions were changed...

Artemis Base - Alex

In another location not far away, a man ran his hands through his hair, messing up the perfect locks but the disheveled look bringing to the owner a sensual and softer feel on an otherwise too masculine face.